"For example, Alcoholic Liver Disease (ALD) is the most prevalent of all alcohol-related causes of death included in this bulletin and is responsible for approximately 63% of all alcohol-related deaths in England and Wales in 2012."

Dr Evelyn Gillan, chief executive of Alcohol Focus Scotland (AFS), said it was good news that alcohol-related deaths in Scotland had fallen in recent years.

However, she pointed out that 20 people were still dying because of alcohol each week in Scotland.

She said: "We know what preventative action works - making alcohol less affordable, less available, and less visible.

"Minimum unit pricing must be introduced as soon as possible."

Drinking habits

The Scottish Parliament has passed legislation to impose a 50p minimum price for a unit of alcohol, but its implementation is stalled pending the conclusion of legal challenges.

In England the alcohol-related death rate was lowest in eastern counties (10.2 per 100,000 population) and highest in the north west (20.7 per 100,000).

The ONS said it was likely that this had largely resulted from regional differences in drinking habits in the past.

The highest proportion of binge drinkers were in the north west (15%) and the lowest in London (8%).